ATLANTA , Georgia -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The state of Georgia , stricken by months of drought , confirmed Friday that it will sue the Army Corps of Engineers .

A view of the East Point Reservoir in Lithia Springs , Georgia , in 2006 ...

Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue had said Wednesday the state would seek an injunction forcing the Corps to stem the flow of water from Lake Lanier , Atlanta 's primary water source .

The Corps administers the lake , which supplies most of the water to Georgia 's capital and feeds the Chattahoochee River , which winds through three states .

Rainfall in the area is about 15 inches below normal for the year .

Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin said , `` This is dire , severe , extreme drought . ''

In the city of Atlanta and surrounding counties , outdoor watering is banned except for a few commercial uses . The state is looking into which businesses would be forced to cut back water use if the drought worsens .

The Army Corps of Engineers says there is about a three-month supply of water left in Lake Lanier , which is 15 feet below its capacity . The corps -- under an agreement reached in the 1980s with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service , the state and downstream users -- releases 5,000 feet of water per second from the dam between the man-made lake and the river .

The figure was based on a Florida hydroelectric power plant 's needs , as well as concern for endangered species in the river , including mussels and sturgeon .

But officials from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials told CNN that no one knows exactly what flow is needed to keep the mussels or the sturgeon alive .

Perdue calls the current water flow policy a `` nonsensical action . ''

`` We should n't have to fight this out in court , '' Franklin said Thursday . `` We do n't want to hurt -LSB- the cities and businesses -RSB- downstream but we 'd like to see some middle ground and hope people would join with us . '' Watch Franklin describe how bad the problem might become ''

But even if an agreement is reached soon , the mayor said her city , which has doubled in population since 1980 , needs to do a better job of conserving water .

Franklin also admitted that the Atlanta area did little to add to storage facilities during years of recent explosive growth , but says the city has now purchased a stone quarry to be developed into a new reservoir .

Atlanta is spending $ 4 billion to fix the city 's water infrastructure . According to Franklin , 14 percent of the city 's pipes , many of which date back to the 1890s , leak . Though the mayor says the percentage of leaky pipes has dropped each of the last six years .

But the remaining repairs will take four to five years and wo n't address the current crisis . Atlanta may soon have to resort to drastic action like some other Southeastern towns have already taken .

In Siler City , North Carolina , residents and businesses have been ordered to cut water use by 50 percent or face penalties . Many restaurants and schools are serving meals on paper plates so they do n't have to wash dishes . Two poultry plants have cut production by one day a week to curtail water use and are also trucking water in for other uses .

The town of Orme , Tennessee , also trucks in water , three times a week -- for everybody .

`` We are high and dry , '' Mayor Tony Ream said .

Meanwhile , Franklin has enacted her own personal measures .

`` I 've cut the time in the shower , '' she said . `` I do n't wait for the water to get hot . I kinda shiver for a few minutes .

`` I put a bucket in it and I use that collected water to water the two flowers I would like to save . '' E-mail to a friend

Rusty Dornin contributed to this report .

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Corp : Lake Lanier has about three months of water for metro Atlanta

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Georgia governor wants limit on water released from the lake

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Atlanta mayor calls for conservation , says city is working to lessen water use